Voyeurism
by Totally-Out-Of-It
Summary: In the future, Merlin - no, Colin finds himself watching the once and future king. A month of watching and the blonde noticed Colin as much as a rock notices the wind, but there was one thing he couldn't let go of from the past - Arthur. Arlin Slash


**Attention Artists: **I'm putting this at the top of all my stories. If you're an artist and wish to draw pictures (doujin/fancomic included) of any story I've written, you have my permission to do so on the condition that I get credit for the idea and you send it to me (links please, no file attachments). Simply send it to me via the message option on my profile or by using the email option on my profile. Either one works fine. Thanks.

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Merlin, or… no… His name was Colin now. He had to keep reminding himself that this was not the medieval kingdom of Camelot. His memories mixed so often that he usually forgot to respond when people called out to 'Colin'. It was hard to get used to being called 'Colin' when he could still hear Arthur calling out to him as 'Merlin' every time he shut his eyes. Still, he knew how to keep his lives separate. He knew what was the past and what was the present. He could differentiate between the names, between the memories.

There was only one thing he couldn't let go of from the past.

Across the way, sitting in a café, was a male about twenty-four years old. He had a book sitting on the table and a handheld palm planner in his hand. He held a stylus up to his lips where it made a dent in his lower lip. Then the back end of the stylus slipped between those lips as the man chewed gently on it. Then, having decided what to do, the stylus reemerged and touched the screen on the planner. The male tapped on the screen for several moments.

Merlin, no Colin… Colin watched from a café across the street. It had taken four years to get himself to England and only a week to bump into the man with the palm planner. The man, stylus still in hand, raised his hand to touch his hair. He clumsily ran his fingers through his short blonde locks and they caught sunlight as they flittered back down to rest on his head. Blue eyes blinked against a ray of sun that blared into them as a team of construction workers carried a long mirror into the café. A small scowl crossed his face for that moment, and then he rubbed his eyes.

Colin smiled. That was the man who used to be known as Prince Arthur. That man was the once and future king of Camelot – though no one would believe that now. Even if Excalibur dropped out of the sky and caused a shockwave as it embedded itself in the asphalt and only Arthur could remove it, no one would believe who he was. They'd make up some excuse as to why he could do it – he used some sort of button, it was all staged, he's the devil incarnate, or something like that. No matter what, it wouldn't turn out well for Arthur… or…, no his name was Bradley now.

Bradley cast a glance over across the street and Colin ducked his head and pretended to read his own book. When he looked back up, Bradley had set down his palm planner and stood up. A woman walked over to his table, and Bradley greeted her with a grin and a French Greeting Kiss, one kiss on each cheek. Colin frowned. Bradley was meeting up with Gwen, though she was called 'Angel' now and was a slightly darker skin tone than what she was back in Camelot's days. He supposed that was because of the changes in location and sunrays over the years. Angel was definitely pretty, and Colin couldn't see her and Bradley dating, but there they were… sitting at a café and talking.

Bradley smiled as he laughed, and Colin could hear it even across the street… but only because he was listening for it. It was the same, or maybe even brighter. Bradley's grin was softer, younger than Arthur's, but his laugh had not changed a bit. Colin smiled.

He'd been watching Bradley for almost a month now. Bradley came to this café several times every week and met a series of friends here. Every day Colin would sit across the street, save for the one day he'd sat two tables away. It had been heart thrumming and nerve wracking, but he'd done it… and Bradley hadn't even glanced up. A month of watching, of being across the street every time Bradley was here, and the blonde noticed Colin about as much as a rock notices the wind.

The dark haired man stood up and paid for the coffee he hadn't drunk. It was left, cold and stagnant, on his otherwise empty table. Book in hand, Colin left his café and used the crosswalk to pass to the other side of the street. He looked up at the sun and smiled. Today would be the last day. If his new life was to move on, he had to stop stalking Bradley James. He still had to protect him, but that didn't mean he had to watch him every second. He had to move on.

Colin turned and strolled right past the café and the group of tables where Bradley sat and spoke with Angel. He didn't look and so he didn't notice the way the blonde's blue eyes turned and followed him as he walked. Colin kept on walking until he was out of sight. He strolled casually until he was at the nearby train station. Today would be the last day he'd sit and watch Bradley for three hours and dream of the past. Today was the day when Colin Morgan stopped closing his eyes and seeing a prince laughing at him and caressing his face. Today was the day he could move away from the tears these memories brought. Colin sighed and rubbed his tired eyes with his hand. They both had to move on… and this was the first step.

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A/N: I wrote a sequel story to this. It's called Observed and is from Arthur's point of view. Both stories are exactly 917 words long. Please read and review both! Thank you!


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